Beginning our 8th year and over 3000 pages. A blog for fans of Track and Field from the 1950's and 60's, culled from various articles in sports journals of the day with added commentaries from readers who lived and ran and coached in that era.
We're the equivalent of an American Legion post of Track and Field but without cheap beer. You may contact us directly at irathermediate@gmail.com or write a comment at the end of a given posting.

Monday, November 16, 2015

V 5 N. 109. Guo Jie Oldest Surviving Olympic Athlete Dies in China

Guo Jie who competed in the discus in the 1936 Olympics for China passed away this week.

Guo Jie stayed on the mainland after the 1949 revolution and survived the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s.

From the South China Morning Post by Wendy Wu

Guo Jie (left), pictured in a recent photograph, and (right) in 1936 while in Berlin at the 1936 Games. Photos: China Business View

China’s oldest former Olympic athlete, who competed in the discus at the 1936 Games in Berlin, died on Sunday at the age of 103, mainland media reports.

Guo Jie, who was born in December 1911 and was part of the Chinese team of more than 70 athletes at the Games, died in Xian, the capital of Shaanxi province, Chinese Business View reported on Monday.

He threw a Chinese record of 42 metres at the national trials in 1936 to qualify for the Games, but was then eliminated after the first round, after failing to reach the later stages of the event by exceeding the minimum distance of 44m.

Guo later said his Olympic dream lasted “at most two hours”.

The former professor at Xian Physical Education University was selected as a torch bearer for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

His death was confirmed by the university on its website.

He had started work at the university in 1954 and carried out research into the health of the elderly after his retirement.

In 1991, at the age of 80, Guo organised a field trip to study the health and exercise habits of middle-aged and elderly people in Xian, and wrote a book in 1993 on the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease through aerobic exercise.

Guo said the secret of his own long life was regular physical exercise and his scientific knowledge of health care.